Project Isizwe connects people for education and social inclusion

Project Isizwe, a non-profit organisation that aims to bring Free Internet Zones (FIZ) to people across South Africa, continues to provide internet connectivity to impoverished communities through free Wifi hotspots.Students, professionals, unemployed people and visitors to open public spaces and schools in the City of Tshwane are already enjoying the benefits of free Wifi, courtesy of Project Isizwe.

Alan Knott-Craig Jr, Founder and CEO of Project Isizwe In partnership with the City of Tshwane, Project Isizwe aspires to connect people for education, economic development and social inclusion. As part of its objective to connect people for education, Project Isizwe recently donated 25 Apple iPads to the top students of the City of Tshwane at a 2014 Mayoral Matric Awards hosted by the Executive Mayor, Councillor Kgosientso Ramokgopa. The Apple iPads will be used by the students to access free Wifi across the city provided by Project Isizwe and enable them to be part of the digital world. “We anticipate that the Apple iPads given to each learner will be a catalyst for change in their lives and bridge the digital divide. Furthermore, with us donating Apple iPads to learners and the availability of free Wifi across the City of Tshwane, students stand a better chance in participating fully in the digital economy,” said Alan Knott-Craig Jr, Founder and CEO of Project Isizwe. “This iPad contribution and free Wifi hotspots should enable students to gain access to online resources, and improve their overall academic performances.” Project Isizwe has already rolled out FIZ in the City of Tshwane in the areas of Soshanguve, Mamelodi and Atteridgeville. FIZ enables users with Wifi enabled devices such as smartphones, tablets and laptops to access free internet without any logins or passwords. The team aims to enter the rest of Africa in the near future, providing free Wifi to other countries on the continent. Recently, Tshwane Wifi TV was launched, with the aim of showing how Free Wifi networks can be used to distribute hyper-local news within low-income communities. As part of this project, local film makers are provided the opportunity supply content to the service, opening up a myriad job opportunities. Tshwane WiFi TV has seen over 600 000 views since November 2014. In addition, services such as Wifi Voice will be available in September 2015 which will enable free calls between users connected to the Tshwane Free Wifi network while using the Wifi Voice application. During 2016, a Wifi Drive-In will be introduced for each region of City of Tshwane. The initial service for Wifi Drive-In will be launched in April 2015. This service is video-on-demand at specific locations that will allow one to watch movies within the Wifi Drive-In area.

ABOUT PROJECT ISIZWE Project Isizwe is bringing Free WiFi to South Africa and connecting people for education, economic development and social inclusion. Project Isizwe is a non-profit organisation which aims to bring the internet to people across South Africa, by facilitating the roll-out of Free Wifi for public spaces in low income communities. The core focus of Project Isizwe is to harness the power of the internet in low-income communities for the purpose of education, and use it as a catalyst for change. Isizwe helps Governments plan, roll-out and maintain Free Wifi networks, helping to trigger a ‘multiplier effect’ on the economy and creating employment. Our non-profit structure allows us to pool bandwidth, source local installers, and deal with Governments without the traditional excessive mark-ups.